Michael Josephson Quotes

What you allow you encourage.

The world has enough beautiful mountains and meadows, spectacular skies and serene lakes. It has enough lush forests, flowered fields, and sandy beaches. It has plenty of stars and the promise of a new sunrise and sunset every day. What the world needs more of is people to appreciate and enjoy it.

Values are good things only if they are good values.

Good intentions are simply not enough. Our character is defined and our lives are determined not by what we want, say or think, but by what we do.

It isn't the absence of conscience or values that prevents us from being all we should be, it is simply the lack of moral courage.

You can't escape moral judgment through a legal loop hole.

Success or failure can only be measured in terms of a particular objective. The success of a person whose life objective is money or status will look very different than the success of one who sets out to make a positive difference in the world.

There is within you, waiting to be called, a great source of power called courage. Call its name and it will give you the strength to confront challenges despite fear and to continue and the heart to continue with bold confidence despite the pain of caused by tragedy.

What will matter is not what you learned, but what you taught.

Character is not only doing the right thing when no one is looking, it's doing the right thing when everyone is looking. It's being willing to do the right thing even when it costs more than you want to pay.

Necessity is not merely the father of invention; it is the father of courage.

Ethics is doing more than the law requires and less than the law allows.

We all have three characters: the one we really have, the one we try to convince the world we have, and the one we think we have.

A person is said to have good character when their habits, dispositions and conduct reflect a deep commitment to ethical virtues and moral principles.

We judge our own character by our best intentions and most noble acts, but we will be judged by our last worst act.

Failure is much easier to handle if you just think of it as feedback to guide your next effort.

If you pay too much attention to your reputation, you could lose your character.

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident. It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice. Choose to live a life that matters.

Christmas has a certain universal appeal that gives it meaning well beyond a day to celebrate the birth of Jesus, but Christians have a special duty to experience its sacred and profound spiritual significance and non-Christians have a duty to treat the day with special respect.

It's easier to make a good person better than to make a bad person good.

I am not and never will be perfect. I am not always as honest, respectful, responsible, fair or as kind as I should be. All I can do is what I should do: strive every day, with every decision to be the best person I can be. I don’t expect to be perfect but I know I can be better.

Ethics is not about the way things are, it is about the way things ought to be.

Our character is revealed by how we treat people who cannot help us or hurt us.

Gratitude is most treasured when it is unexpected. When we expect, even demand gratitude, we treat it simply as payment due for some service we rendered and we squeeze any good feeling out of it.

Pretty isn't beauty. Pretty is how you look; Beauty is who you are. Pretty is in the face and body; Beauty is in the heart, mind and soul. Pretty fades; Beauty grows.

Approach the New Year with resolve to find the opportunities hidden in each new day.

If you want to be happy, learn to be alone without being lonely. Learn that being alone does not mean being unhappy. The world is full of plenty of interesting and enjoyable things to do and people who can enrich your life.

It is better to be unsuccessful pursuing a significant goal that being successful attaining an insignificant one.

Success comes in cans. Failures comes in can'ts.

Whether we want them or not, the New Year will bring new challenges; whether we seize them or not, the New year will bring new opportunities.

There are two sure ways to fail: never get started and quit before you succeed. Many companies promote the language of risk-taking and innovation but are so concerned with short term profit goals that their culture discourages innovation (trying new things) and abandons promising projects too soon. It shouldn't require exceptional moral courage to try new things and stick with them.

Character is doing the right thing even when it costs more than you want to pay. When it comes to character, you dont have to be sick to get better. Its easier for a good person to get better than for a bad person to get good.

Never do anything for another with the expectation of gratitude. The expectation itself turns the gift into an exchange and suggests a debt is owed you.

Whatever you do, make a difference. Earn the right to look back at something and say, 'I did that.'

For many of us gratitude to others comes with a sense of debt that can never be fully paid and therefore the things we are thankful for are never really ours.

Don't let others define you. Don't let the past confine you. Take charge of your life with confidence and determination and there are no limits on what you can do or be.

You only tasted the water. I tasted the gift. The water was simply the container for an act of loving-kindness and nothing could be sweeter.

A caring heart that listens is often more valued than an intelligent mind that talks.

America is a song that sounds the best when we all sing together - at least for a while.

Character refers to dispositions and habits that determine the way that person normally responds to desires, fears, challenges, opportunities, failures and successes.

Don't ask whether it is going to be easy. Ask whether it is worth it.

Leadership is not a matter of authority, it is a matter of influence. A true leader teaches others to understand more, motivates them to be more and inspires them to become more.

At home, be grateful. At work, be appreciative. Gratitude is a gift we give ourselves. Appreciation is a gift we give to others.

What will matter is not your competence, but your character. What will matter is not how many people you knew but how many will feel a lasting loss when you are gone. What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by who and for what?

No word makes me happier than the word "daddy" when it's directed to me.

Using the phrase business ethics might imply that the ethical rules and expectations are somehow different in business than in other contexts. There really is no such thing as business ethics. There is just ethics and the challenge for people in business and every other walk in life to acknowledge and live up to basic moral principles like honesty, respect, responsibility, fairness and caring.

Ethics doesn't require us to ignore our self-interests or demand a life of self-sacrifice. It requires that we know the difference between what we want and what we should do

How many times do you get to lie before you are a liar?